In Her Sights (12 page)

Then Joy’s attention shifted to Jasmine’s hair. The little girl’s eyes widened in obvious awe. She stretched out a tentative hand toward the long, blond braid brushing Jasmine’s thigh.

“Are you Rap…Rap…” Joy glanced over her shoulder at her grandmother. “What’s the name of the princess with the long hair?”

“Rapunzel?” Anna’s voice was soft and laced with a smile.

Joy leaned closer to Jasmine. “Did you have to cut your hair when you escaped?” she whispered, her voice conspiratorial.

Jasmine’s panicked gaze flew to Luke’s, but his daughter refused to be ignored. She stroked the shimmers of blond bound by the braid. “Were you scared when you ran away from the wicked witch?”

Confusion painted Jasmine’s face. “What witch?”

“The one who stole you from your mommy and daddy,” Joy said as if the answer was obvious.

A shaft of pain flashed in Jasmine’s eyes, and Luke winced. He knew very little about her childhood, but it couldn’t have been easy since she’d wiped away not only her name, but her entire identity. For all he knew she
had
escaped from a wicked witch. “Joy, don’t bother Jasmine. She’s sad right now.”

Joy’s eyes widened with alarm. “Are you going to cry? Do you need your mommy and daddy?”

Luke could see Jasmine struggling to maintain composure, her hands clenched in her lap. “I don’t have a mommy and daddy, Joy.”

“Who tucks you in at night?”

Luke stepped forward to pull Joy away, but his daughter’s wrinkled forehead made him pause. He could tell she was working some problem out in her unique three-year-old mind.

She looked down at Hero and then up at Jasmine. “Is it scary at bedtime?”

Jasmine blanched. The sniper was gone. A vulnerable woman had replaced her. She tried to smile at Joy. “Sometimes.”

“I get scared too,” his daughter said, leaning in to Jasmine. “I don’t like the dark,” Joy whispered.

“Me either.” Jasmine’s hand shook; her eyes turned haunted. “I…uh…have to go now.”

“Wait.” Joy lifted her chin and stuck out both hands, cradling the well-worn orange and white fish. “You can have Hero. He’ll keep you safe.”

Then Luke saw something he’d never seen before. Jasmine’s eyes glistened and she bit her lip.

“I can’t take Hero. He belongs to you.”

That stubborn Montgomery glint shone in his daughter’s eyes. “It’s okay. I have Daddy
and
Gamma
and
Uncle Gabe
and
Uncle Caleb
and
Uncle Seth
and
Uncle Nick. And I even have Uncle Zach. He’s the Dark Avenger,” she whispered. “He flies and catches bad guys.”

Helplessly, Jazz glanced at Luke. “What should I—?”

“Take good care of him. He needs lotsa hugs every day.” Joy shoved Hero into Jasmine’s arms. With a small hiccup Joy ran past Luke and into her grandmother’s arms.

Jazz stared at the stuffed toy. “I…uh…don’t know what to say.” Her voice had gone hoarse. “Th-thank you, Joy.”

A thunder of footsteps echoing down the hall nearly drowned Jazz’s words. Gabe’s teammates filled the opening of the waiting room.

Sarge stood framed in the doorway and studied the situation before stepping inside. He strode across the room and nodded his head in greeting. “Mrs. Montgomery.”

She stroked the blond hair of the child resting in her lap. “Sergeant Carder. Thank you for coming.”

“How’s Gabe doing?”

The rest of the team moved forward and shed curious glances at Jasmine.

“He’s still in surgery. It’ll be a while,” said Luke.

As the team shifted to offer their best wishes to his family, Luke watched Jasmine draw away from them. No one came toward her. Couldn’t they see what they were doing to her? Each second they were in this room ignoring her devastated her even more. As it was, she retreated inwardly, inch by inch, before his eyes.

She dug into her pocket, obviously going for a Life Saver. He hated seeing her like this. If it weren’t for his mother and daughter, he’d knock a few of these idiots into doing the right thing. As it was, he’d have to be covert.

He pulled Paretti aside. “What the hell does your team think it’s doing, treating Jasmine like the enemy?”

Paretti grimaced. “We tried. She distanced herself. As usual.”

“Well, try harder. You all should be supporting her. Gabe told me you wouldn’t fight for her. I didn’t believe him until now. Guess I’ll be the one standing by her since her teammates are too cowardly.”

“Step back, Luke. You don’t get it. There are a few jerks on the team, but most of them wanted to give her a chance. Have given her more than one. She pushed us away. Makes it hard to watch her back.”

“Still—”

“Her shot was over a foot wide with no possibility of deflection,” Paretti snapped. “The whole operation cratered. Gabe assumed the target was down. Instead he caught the bastard’s knife.”

Luke stared at Jasmine, who’d turned her back to the team and still sat alone, almost shrinking into the chair. Snipers
could
miss a target. It was unusual, but not unprecedented. A foot wide, though? He’d never heard of a shot that far off in all his years overseas.

And Jasmine being off that much. He didn’t buy it. The only other option made his stomach knot. Sabotage. He’d been inside the SWAT den. The weapons were locked up, access limited to members of the sheriff’s office. Proof of corruption, perhaps? Jasmine and Gabe might both be victims of the cancer spreading through the ranks.

“She doesn’t miss. Ever.” Luke spoke the words loudly enough that a couple of SWAT team members turned their heads.

“She missed tonight,” Paretti said under his breath.

Luke caught Jasmine’s expression and knew she’d heard at least part of the exchange. She carefully cradled Hero in her arms, stood, and, with her shoulders hunched, walked out of the room without saying a word to anyone.

“Shoot,” Paretti muttered, “Maybe I—”

Luke stopped him with a glance. “Don’t bother. If you want to do any good, talk some sense into your so-called team. I’ll go.”

He sent a quick glance from Joy to his mother. She nodded her understanding. Joy would be okay. His mother would see to that.

Luke stalked out of the waiting room and didn’t pause for the elevator. He plowed down the stairs two-by-two until he reached the lower floor just in time to see her exit the glass revolving doors at the hospital entrance. Luke broke into a run, ignoring the censure of the white-haired gargoyle guarding the information booth.

When he finally shoved outside, the woman he’d raced after had already crossed the parking lot.

“Jasmine!” he yelled.

She didn’t slow down, and he sprinted after her. When he caught up to her, he spun her into his arms and pulled her close. She shoved against his chest, but he wouldn’t let her go. He pinned her to him, unwilling to release her.

“Let me go, Luke. Your family needs you.”

“You didn’t have to leave.”

“How could I stay?” She sagged in his embrace and ducked her face against his chest. “Don’t you get it? It was my fault. I lay on that hill tonight, far above the action, with just one job. One friggin’ job. Take out the bad guy. Well, I screwed up, and Gabe paid the price. I know it. The team knows it.”

“That’s bull. In one night your car got vandalized, a sniper took a shot at you, and you missed a shot. There are no coincidences. If you blame anyone, it should be me. Everything started with my investigation and the article I wrote about you.”

She shrugged him off, shaking her head. “Protecting them was
my
responsibility. You asked me if I was ready. I honestly thought I could handle it.” She lifted her chin and met his gaze. “I made a mistake. I was wrong. Now Gabe might die.”

“He won’t die. You said it yourself, he’s strong. He’s a fighter. So come inside with the family.”

“I can’t.” She clutched at his shirt. “I want you to know I’d trade everything to have Gabe safe and well. For you and your family. I’m so sorry.”

She was so set on being alone, so determined to take all the blame. He framed her face with his hands and stared into her tired eyes. “You belong in there. With the people who care about Gabe.”

“A sniper who misses can’t be part of the team. They can’t be counted on.”

“I don’t think you made a mistake. I think someone sabotaged your weapon.”

“It doesn’t matter. The weak link gets you killed. It’s my job to be perfect.”

“No one is perfect. And a team is supposed to watch each other’s back.” He kneaded her shoulders and rubbed the knotted muscles. “No one can do it alone. No one expects perfection. Gabe didn’t expect it. He
told
me not to let you blame yourself.”

“Well, I do. My team does. I’ve failed them.”

“Are you telling me none of them ever came up short?”

“It’s not the same. I have one responsibility. How can they ever trust me again?” She bowed her head. “It’s over, Luke. My career, my place on the team. My whole identity.”

He lifted one hand and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I can’t tell you there won’t be fallout with your team, but don’t give in. Where’s that fighter I know is in you?”

“You don’t know me.” She shoved against him to escape his embrace.

“You’re wrong about that.”

His lips swooped down and fastened to hers, hard and demanding. Butter rum burst between them. The taste flooded him with memories of Saturday mornings nestled in warm covers, losing himself in Jasmine’s passionate touch, making the world fade to nothingness.

God, he wanted that for her right now.

She softened against him, and the chaos of emotions engulfed his senses. He pressed his body closer, where, for just a moment, he lost himself. Present, past, future, they all faded away in the sweetness of her lips. Nothing existed but her mouth. Her hands roamed his back, eliciting a rumble of pleasure in his chest.

Struggling to control the primal need burning inside him, he raised his mouth and stared at the woman who’d just melted in his arms. He wanted to unbraid her hair and tangle his fingertips through those silken strands. He longed to feel her legs wrapped around him and her breasts pressed against his chest with nothing between them but heat and desire. She could make him forget like no one ever had.

Now was not the time or the place, but he would have her again. And soon. He didn’t want to give up touching her, so he let his hands roam down her arms, down past her waist to the soft curve of her hips. Her eyes blinked open, soft with desire, and he pushed back a wisp of hair.

She swayed against him, shaking her head. “Oh, God. I can’t do this,” she choked. “I won’t be like her. I swore I would
never
be like her.”

Her words didn’t make sense, but the panic in her voice, the torment in her eyes tore through him. “Who?”

“My mother,” Jasmine said. “I used to hide in the dark, forgotten, while she entertained them. A man, any man, meant more to her than I did. She only remembered me once they left.”

She pushed away from him, her cheeks drawn, her body stiff, and he let her go. The fight within her died right in front of him. He wanted to shake the passion back into her, but her small revelation stopped him. He could only imagine the horrors she’d faced, and he could do nothing to protect her from the past.

“Look at me, Luke. My teammate is helpless, maybe dying. It’s my fault, and all I can think about is escaping into your arms. I’m no better than she was.” Jasmine shook her head slowly. “I may not know who I am anymore, but if I become like her, I really
am
nothing.”

From the hidden lookout above the hospital, a hand reached out and ripped a branch from the tree. Hatred seethed through every pore. Luke Montgomery had kissed the bitch.

A red haze clouded blurry vision. No. No. No. This wasn’t right. He was ruining everything. Jane Sanford was supposed to be humiliated, abandoned, and alone. Her team didn’t want her around anymore. The cop had said so.

Whitened fingers balled against camouflage pants. The slut was just like her mother.

Montgomery was like all men. He couldn’t wait to get into her pants. He’d been warned, but he’d fallen into the Jezebel’s arms. Well, he’d regret that mistake. The ones he cared for most—his family—would forfeit the ultimate price. They would be destroyed.

A satisfied smile twisted determined lips. Soon, Jane and Montgomery would both pay. In blood.